Boys & Girls Club: Overcoming Chaos

Alright, its time to be honest. Volunteering with youth, no matter where you are, is going to be chaotic. Here’s my advice.

1) Remain calm.
2) Approach and address children one at a time.
3) Remember each child is unique and it will take time for you to understand him or her. Likewise, it will take time for children to understand who you are.

I’m inspired to jot down of few words of advice and encouragement while performing a youth service position because, as fun as it can be, small things make your work as a volunteer difficult.

For an entire hour of volunteer work on Monday, Dec. 17th, L was jumping out from corners of the room and screaming in my ears. I’ve struggled with this same young gentleman enough times in the past to know that he uses screaming as a coping mechanism.

Screaming, at least for L, helps him deal with stress. However, L manages to scream his stress directly into me.

So what do you do?

1) Remain calm and take a second to think about what to say.

2) Focus in on L and pay less attention your surroundings. The brain can focus and really zero in on one thing at a time. The Boys & Girls Club serves a lot of youth and there are a lot of distractions – but when it comes time to mentor a child, you need to focus.

3) Speak with with L. Discover screaming is “fun” for him. Explain, “L, I admire your creativity, but I think it would be best if you used it towards something that doesn’t harm or negatively impact others. You’re hurting my ears, buddy.”

4) Here’s an important step: Acknowledge that you aren’t going to permanently change a child’s life with one conversation. L continued to scream until he received a STEP (the discipline policy at the Boys & Girls Club, Rochester).

I’d like to comment on my last tip. Volunteers perform an awesome service and make a HUMONGOUS difference – one uninspired by the changing hands of money. However, remember to have fun, keep a positive attitude and give up some of the control.

You can’t always be the hero, changing lives for the better and keeping everyone safe. Other people don’t need a hero – not if we want them to grow up to be independent leaders.

Volunteer service is all about new friends, new experiences and good times.

Boys & Girls Club: A Blizzard of Inspiration

V Tip 004: Use the tools around you to make your job successful.

Dec 10, 2012: It snowed two days ago; the first time we've had a real snow fall in the community in almost 300 days. Volunteer work requires that you take advantage of changes like this. It’s new. It’s fresh. It makes Boys & Girls Club kids want to sled. And so we did.

It was 5:00 pm and the typical schedule of the Boys & Girls Club required that we did something academic during that time: completing homework, reading or working on an art project. Instead, we went outside to sled.

I made sure the sledding happened by getting a Boys & Girls Club staff to come with us, by obtaining sleds from the Club closet and by asking a few educational questions before pushing kids down the hill, whooping and laughing.

“What is snow made out of?”

“What is 12 X 5?”

“What is a cumulus cloud?”

In between the questions, M complained about her freezing fingers and I lent her my gloves. S later complained that his ears were freezing and I lent him my hat. Oftentimes, the easiest solution is right in front of you.

Minnesota Children's Museum, Rochester: Live - Laugh - Play

Minnesota Children's Museum, Rochester
What? Learning through play for infants to grade school children. This is a satellite site of Minneapolis’s museum.
Who? Mature high school students and older
Volunteer Process Time: With contacts, I made it through in one week
Website: http://rochester.mcm.org


It’s finally going to happen. After years of debating whether I’d become a doctor, a lawyer, a writer, an astronaut, a dinosaur or a super villain, I've decided to become a Playologist!

“Playologist” is the name for volunteers of the Minnesota Children’s Museum, Rochester. I’m loving the basic concept: learning through play.

This upcoming Thursday, I will be patrolling the small, restaurant-sized Children’s Museum for opportunities to play, ask questions and goof off. Roughly two months back, I had the opportunity to dress up as Clifford the Big Red Dog at the Minnesota Children’s Museum, Rochester and, despite the countless terrified children; I had a blast playing the role of one of my childhood heroes (who doesn't love a friendly red dog the size of a house?). I can only hope I will have as much fun when the true me is revealed.

More to come,

Andy Seifert, Playologist